Bluffdale man charged in shooting out on bail

WEST JORDAN — Reggie Campos says he is anxious to have his day in court and give his side of the story.

Although he declined to talk specifics about what happened that evening, he said Wednesday that media reports that he shot an unarmed man in Bluffdale on July 22 were inaccurate.

"Reports I shot the individual while not armed are incorrect," he told the Deseret News shortly after posting bail and being released from the Salt Lake County Jail on Wednesday afternoon. "I look forward to my day in court to prove it."

Campos said he looks forward to other witnesses taking the stand in his defense.

Wearing a shirt, pants and white socks because he did not have any shoes with him when he was taken to jail, Campos walked down the long ramp from the jail where his brother picked him up and took him home.

Campos, 43, is accused of shooting David Serbeck. Some neighbors say it was a case of severe miscommunication between two well-intentioned men. Investigators say Serbeck was conducting a neighborhood watch patrol that night and had followed Campos' daughter, apparently unaware of what she and her friends were doing.

The daughter, not knowing Serbeck was patrolling the neighborhood, was frightened by the unknown man following her and called her father, prompting Campos to set out to find Serbeck's vehicle, police say.

Campos, who had not met Serbeck though they live just five minute apart, was also active in his neighborhood, trying to keep residents safe. He recently had informed his neighbors about a rash of mail thefts and burglaries. Campos' own home was burglarized the week before.

Thinking he was protecting his daughter, Campos found Serbeck's car and confronted him in the street. Both men exited their vehicles armed. Court documents say Serbeck placed his gun on the ground and kicked it away. That's when Campos fired twice, severely damaging Serbeck's spinal cord, causing permanent paralysis, according to the charges.

But Campos' family members say the mild-mannered licensed CPA is a loving husband and father, a family man with three daughters and a son, and a person who cares about his neighbors and his community. He is hardly the stereotypical image of a person charged with attempted murder, accused of gunning down an unarmed man in the middle of the street, as prosecutors have alleged.

During a brief video hearing in 3rd District Court, Judge Robert Adkins reduced Campos' bail from $500,000 cash only to $100,000 bondable bail. By 1:30 p.m., Campos was able to post bail.